Duke Football Transfer Portal Watch 2021

[laxdawg97]

Disappointed in the new coaches pledge of fidelity to running a pro style offense? That seems like the hardest nut to crack for a team that cannot recruit stacks of elite athletes.

Not at this point. I heard that he'd expect to include multiple looks, including some pro style, but not exclusively. I don't think we can draw any firm conclusions until we at least see who the OC is, but his likely pool of candidates seems plenty diverse.

Jimbo is firmly pro style, and I seem to recall ND was when Elko was there, but Wake's spread/mesh RPO or whatever they call it, is the other end of the spectrum. Clawson has evolved it since Elko left, but given what he shared about the closeness of their relationship I'm sure he's privy to the thought process about choosing schemes for the ACC generally.

What I do feel much better about is that King didn't choose a HC like Chadwell whose entire identity as a coach is tied to a single scheme, or a service academy guy whose run the triple option for 20 years but promises they'll be more variable. When the search started, I was prepared for both possible outcomes.

[OldPhiKap]

Check Coach’s press conference, he addressed this issue. He would like a more pro-style, but is looking to mold the offense to the personnel. If we have strong RBs, we run. If we have strong TE’s, we feature that. If we have good wide-outs and a QB, we feature pass.

He sounded a lot like K — we mold the attack to the team personnel we have.

And — he is open to the transfer portal, saying it would be foolish not to acknowledge that it’s the field upon which we all play right now.

(Others can correct if they heard his PC differently).

[Acymetric]

Check Coach’s press conference, he addressed this issue. He would like a more pro-style, but is looking to mold the offense to the personnel. If we have strong RBs, we run. If we have strong TE’s, we feature that. If we have good wide-outs and a QB, we feature pass.

He sounded a lot like K — we mold the attack to the team personnel we have.

And — he is open to the transfer portal, saying it would be foolish not to acknowledge that it’s the field upon which we all play right now.

(Others can correct if they heard his PC differently).

Looks spot on to me. Basically sounded like he wants to go get his studs that fit Duke's profile and then tailor the offense to get the ball in their hands. As far as transfers, said it is a tool to use but we "don't want to live there."

[budwom]

Looks spot on to me. Basically sounded like he wants to go get his studs that fit Duke's profile and then tailor the offense to get the ball in their hands. As far as transfers, said it is a tool to use but we "don't want to live there."

Everything he said makes sense. Having said that, we have severe talent issues across the board, including (but not limited to) RB, WR and QB (we may have some talent there, just not sure)...I expect a tough start to the Elko reign but I think he's up to the challenge.

[laxdawg97]

Everything he said makes sense. Having said that, we have severe talent issues across the board, including (but not limited to) RB, WR and QB (we may have some talent there, just not sure)...I expect a tough start to the Elko reign but I think he's up to the challenge.

I thought Elko did a fantastic job of setting expectations, including popping the bubble on some of the most problematic fantasies that come with a HC change.

EG, that a defensive-oriented HC will immediately announce an OC that fans have heard of. Or, that he'll immediately jump in the transfer portal and grab talent that'll fix last seasons most glaring deficiencies.

For all the success stories like Tennessee and Michigan State where new HCs used the portal shrewdly, those were different situations at places that bear minimal resemblance to Duke. Easy fixes can also go poorly and set a program back further. See: Brice, Chase.

What fans can control right now is how we support the team, via buying tickets and taking more people to games, and in cultivating hope and optimism rather than skepticism. In the toughest hiring market in recent memory, Duke got a guy who was recognized very early in his career of having both CEO-level leadership traits and an elite eye for schemes, and who could have been a HC a decade ago if he'd wanted. He is going to make mistakes, just like Cutcliffe did, but he sees the very best in Duke and is betting his career he can take Duke places we haven't been since the 1940s. I'm pumped for the ride.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Disappointed in the new coaches pledge of fidelity to running a pro style offense? That seems like the hardest nut to crack for a team that cannot recruit stacks of elite athletes.

Agree. That's the kind of vanilla offense that I was afraid a DC would prefer as a HC. I don't think that's Duke's best option, but we'll see how it works out - and see who his OC choice is. That's the only thing he's said that kind of was a downer IMO.

He sounded a lot like K — we mold the attack to the team personnel we have.

.

He did sound like K, but that is where FB and BB are not really great analogs. In BB, you can recruit 2 people and totally change the strengths and weaknesses of your team, and mold your attack based on that. In FB it's more necessary to be committed to an identity, because it takes dozens of new players to change a team's strengths and weaknesses. Duke will not get good QBs and WRs unless Duke commits to airing it out...as example.

[Acymetric]

Bobo to UCLA:

https://twitter.com/jak3bobo/status/1470897683984437251

Jake seems like a good fit for LA for some reason, hope he has a great season!

[Skydog]

Excuse my football ignorance (I’m much more of a soccer and bball fan) but what is implied by pro style offense? Does this mostly refer to the qb being under center rather than in shotgun? More power running down the middle and less reliance on spread out receivers?

[OldPhiKap]

I thought Elko did a fantastic job of setting expectations, including popping the bubble on some of the most problematic fantasies that come with a HC change.

EG, that a defensive-oriented HC will immediately announce an OC that fans have heard of. Or, that he'll immediately jump in the transfer portal and grab talent that'll fix last seasons most glaring deficiencies.

For all the success stories like Tennessee and Michigan State where new HCs used the portal shrewdly, those were different situations at places that bear minimal resemblance to Duke. Easy fixes can also go poorly and set a program back further. See: Brice, Chase.

What fans can control right now is how we support the team, via buying tickets and taking more people to games, and in cultivating hope and optimism rather than skepticism. In the toughest hiring market in recent memory, Duke got a guy who was recognized very early in his career of having both CEO-level leadership traits and an elite eye for schemes, and who could have been a HC a decade ago if he'd wanted. He is going to make mistakes, just like Cutcliffe did, but he sees the very best in Duke and is betting his career he can take Duke places we haven't been since the 1940s. I'm pumped for the ride.

This excellent post bears repeating.

[HereBeforeCoachK]

Excuse my football ignorance (I’m much more of a soccer and bball fan) but what is implied by pro style offense? Does this mostly refer to the qb being under center rather than in shotgun? More power running down the middle and less reliance on spread out receivers?

You could (and will probably) get several answers to this...and I would say that the answer is a bit of a moving target...as offensive football is always evolving. I will say the QB under center would not be implied any longer, as that is not the norm any more in the NFL. In 2020, 65% of total snaps were shotgun, and 35% under center. I would say that a pro style offense does indicate that most under center snaps would be runs, and not passes, as the NFL stats back that up too.

It does imply a more traditional offense, without much of the RPO (run pass option) and other QB running situations, and is not a "spread" type offense. Generally it's an offense with 2 wide outs, a TE and a fullback or HBack type. The higher percentage of running total is not necessarily implied either, though some might read it that way.

[cato]

Bobo to UCLA:

https://twitter.com/jak3bobo/status/1470897683984437251

Jake seems like a good fit for LA for some reason, hope he has a great season!

Jake is going from a program plays thousands of miles from me (2,500) to a program that plays 100 miles from me, and yet I probably won’t see him catch a football again.

Best of luck Jake.

[TruBlu]

Random thoughts:

1) Having a DC as head coach doesn’t mean a lack of knowledge of offense. Although Spurrier was an offensive minded coach, one thing that made his offense so exciting was because he understood defenses. He imparted that knowledge to his QB’s. When Ben Bennett called an audible, good things happened.

2) I expect Moore will see the field a lot next year, but not as a QB. Maybe RB, or slot receiver. Leonard showed some promise at QB, and someone else may appear/emerge. Moore needs to get touches, but not behind center.

3) I’m looking forward to next fall. If an over 70 geezer like me, with having had major back surgery, prostate cancer, and a 20 year old car can make a 6 hour one way drive to support the team, surely some other folks can show up in the fall. (I stand up behind the wall at the games, since the 6 hour drive takes a toll on my back.)

4) Somewhat not mentioned enough lately is: GTHC, GTH

[Bob Green]

Bobo to UCLA:

Brittain Brown achieved success with the Bruins, hopefully, Bobo will too.

[sagegrouse]

I agree with you. This thread gives me indigestion. Offense was dysfunctional this season and we are losing our best running back, best receiver and starting quarterback. Sigh...

Bob -- Didn't Jake and Gunnar graduate?

[Bob Green]

Bob -- Didn't Jake and Gunnar graduate?

Yes they graduated but they have eligibility remaining.

[JasonEvans]

Yes they graduated but they have eligibility remaining.

I think Gunnar graduated like 3 years ago or something like that. Between redshirts and Covid, he was like a soph who was working on his masters.

[laxdawg97]

You could (and will probably) get several answers to this...and I would say that the answer is a bit of a moving target...as offensive football is always evolving. I will say the QB under center would not be implied any longer, as that is not the norm any more in the NFL. In 2020, 65% of total snaps were shotgun, and 35% under center. I would say that a pro style offense does indicate that most under center snaps would be runs, and not passes, as the NFL stats back that up too.

It does imply a more traditional offense, without much of the RPO (run pass option) and other QB running situations, and is not a "spread" type offense. Generally it's an offense with 2 wide outs, a TE and a fullback or HBack type. The higher percentage of running total is not necessarily implied either, though some might read it that way.

Another inference I made from the totality of Elko's remarks is that he intends for the offense to exploit Duke's one inherent advantage: the intelligence of our players.

At Stanford, David Shaw typically runs a mostly pro style system where lots of responsibility is put on both the QB and OL to make reads and adjustments at the line of scrimmage. That's rooted in the belief that there's a window between players taking their stances and snapping the ball when elite minds can exploit their edge in mental processing w/o it negatively impacting their physical performance. The NFL loves Stanford offensive linemen partly for this reason. It's also no accident that their QBs tend to hang around NFL rosters longer than their #s would indicate.

A key downside to a classic pro style offense is that the additional complexity means it'll takes most players more than one spring season and camp to be ready to contribute to core packages. You saw it this year at A&M when their starter got hurt. Zach Calzada - who's in the portal - is supremely talented, but it took a few starts to make up for his lack of reps with the full playbook.

Spread schemes took root in high school initially in part because they drastically reduced the mental load and let offenses play faster. The SEC followed suit in part because they appeal to 5* who want to play immediately. If Elko believes he can snag a couple of these elite talents each year, I'm all for it, and I'm confident he'll assemble a staff that'll figure out how to exploit whatever edge he sees in the roster.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Add CB Jeremiah Lewis to those entering the portal. That's an unfortunate loss.

https://www.espn.com/college-footbal...jeremiah-lewis

[Bob Green]

Add CB Jeremiah Lewis to those entering the portal. That's an unfortunate loss.

Depressing news.

[Acymetric]

Not a loss yet...there have been instances of players entering the portal and later withdrawing. Although admittedly the timing (shortly after the new HC arrives) makes that feel unlikely.